The Basics Of Patchwork

Inevitably, there will be a day when you’re in the position of patching and painting a wall or two. Maybe you moved into a house that was riddled with someone else’s art hooks, or your kid “accidentally” knocked a hammer into a wall pretending to be Jason Cameron, or you’re just changing things up with your assortment of home decor pieces, just remember that there are a few simple tricks to get the wall prepped and corrected, and you’ll feel empowered to fix anything.

DIY Network has a lot of good tips when it comes to achieving a great paint finish on your walls, but even before you get to that, you’ll have to know the in’s and out’s of basic wall patching. Lightweight spackling compound happens to be one of the handiest Mr. Fix It items in my arsenal; it’s a bit easier to use than drywall compound, and is the perfect substitute for filling small nail holes or drywall imperfections.

Keep on reading to see how I used this quick fix to correct a problem area in my living room!

I even put it to use recently filling some holes left in my living room plaster wall when I removed a floating shelf that was secured by toggle bolts. After plugging the holes with the help of a spackle knife (most were upwards of a 1/2″ diameter), I left the compound to dry overnight. By the following day, it was solid and ready to be sanded smooth. A sheet of 135 grit sandpaper will be fine for small jobs, but for larger patches, you may want to start with a heavier grit (80, for instance) and work your way up to something finer to ensure a better result.

Once the patched spots are undetectable to the touch, you can paint right over them. There are instances where I prime over the compound first, but in this case, I brought in paint of the existing wall color and applied it with a paint brush, followed lightly by a high-density foam roller to eliminate any strokes. You can’t even tell where the flaws were (hint: they were directly below the picture frame and above the shelf).

Ahh, beautiful. It makes for such an easy way to be constantly rotating art in your home!

Catching the home improvement bug at an early age, Emily Winters is a now a devoted DIYer living in Rochester, NY. The projects she covers on her blog Merrypad range from painting a wall to building a deck, so it’s only natural she landed at DIYNetwork.com. You can follow Emily on twitter at @merrypad and like her on facebook at facebook.com/merrypad.